Family Planning Plus

History and Purpose of the Program

To help improve access to screening for breast and cervical cancers among medically underserved women, Congress passed the Breast and Cervical Cancer Mortality Prevention Act of 1990, which created the National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program. Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through a contract with the PA Department of Health, its purpose is to reduce breast and cervical cancer morbidity and mortality through screening, referral and follow-up, public education and outreach, professional education, quality assurance, surveillance, evaluation, partnership development, and community involvement.

Established in 1991, the national program is currently implemented in all 50 states, five U.S. territories, the District of Columbia, and 11 American Indian/Alaska Native organizations.  To date it has:

• Served more than 4.2 million women
• Provided over 10.4 million breast and cervical cancer screening examinations
• Diagnosed more than 54,276 breast cancers, 3,113 invasive cervical cancers, and 144,460 premalignant cervical lesions, of which 41% were high-grade.

In Pennsylvania, the program is known as the HealthyWoman Program. Pennsylvania’s HealthyWoman Program has been providing crucial breast and cervical cancer screening services to eligible women since 1993.   In 2005, largely due to advocacy efforts of the PA Breast Cancer Coalition, state funding was added to extend screening services to eligible women between the ages of 40 and 49.

Eligibility

You are eligible for HealthyWoman screening services if you meet all three of the following criteria. You must:

• Be a female Pennsylvania resident between the ages of 40 and 64
• Have no health care insurance, insufficient health care insurance (one that does not cover breast and/or cervical cancer screening services), or an insurance with a co-pay or deductible that you can’t afford
• Have a pre-tax household income at or below 250% of the federal poverty annual income guidelines (based on the number of people living in your household- see below)

Certain age exceptions may apply. Please call our office to see if you are eligible.

Early Detection Medical Services

Eligible women receive the following FREE services through the HealthyWoman Program:

• Education/counseling
• Breast self examination instruction
• Clinical breast exams
• Mammograms
• Pelvic exams
• Pap tests

When abnormal results are found, the program may also pay for additional testing, such as diagnostic mammograms, colposcopy,  ultrasound, and breast biopsies.

Treatment Services

Effective January 1, 2002 Pennsylvania passed legislation to participate with the Federal Breast and Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment (BCCPT) Act Program. BCCPT ensures that eligible women can receive the medical care they need through Medicaid if they are diagnosed with breast or cervical cancer.

To be eligible for BCCPT, a woman must:

• Meet income requirements for the HealthyWoman Program
• Be a United States citizen or eligible alien
• Be a Pennsylvania resident
• Be under the age of 65 (those 65 and older qualify for Medicare)
• Have a social security number or applied for one
• Be uninsured for breast or cervical cancer treatment
• Be diagnosed with breast or cervical cancer or a qualifying pre-cancerous condition of the breast or cervix

Your HealthyWoman Provider

If you live in Snyder, Union, Northumberland, Mifflin or Juniata County, your HealthyWoman provider is Family Planning Plus. However, women who live in any PA county can receive HealthyWoman Program services at Family Planning Plus Please call one of our offices for an appointment.

Lewisburg (570) 523-3600

Selinsgrove (570) 372-0637

Shamokin (570) 648-0582

Lewistown (717) 248-0175

If you live in another county and would like to receive a referral to the HealthyWoman provider closest to you, please call the Statewide Hotline at

1-800-215-7494  (this is a statewide hotline for WIC, Adagio, and HealthyWoman).

Funds from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, through a contract with the Pennsylvania Department of Health, support the HealthyWoman Program.